2022 Top Five - Music

We have 12 days until the new year. 2023 is upon us. Since we are close to the new year I'm going to spend this week doing my best of lists. I'll do music, movies, tv, podcasts and sports. I will do a top 5 like I do every year as well. Take it or leave it, but these are my top 5 in all the listed categories. Today we will start with music.

Music has been different this year for me. I am getting into a territory where I am stuck. I listen to the same stuff over and over. I like what I like. I need to branch out, and that is a goal for 2023 in music for me, but as of now, I am stuck in my ways. My top 5 this year will be different than in the past, but it is still music based.

At number 5 I have my refound love for bands I listened to 20 years ago and stopped for some unknown reason. I may have let my music snobbery get in the way or moved on to something else, who knows. But this year I have found that I like a good amount of the bands from my past. Franz Ferdinand is back in my life. They are rad. They play cool pop music. I saw them in the "Sparks Brothers" movie and that reinvigorated my want to listen to them. I am dabbling with the band Clutch again. They play older blues songs with a heavier sound. They use lots of reverb and distortion while playing classic tunes. They are great. I also got very much back into The Strokes. They are a good band. They are what The Ramones wished they could have been. The Strokes are a much more talented Ramones. I am happy that I let my snobbish ways go and rediscovered these bands. That makes me happy.

At number 4 I got to see Nas and Wu Tang Clan perform live this summer. Busta Rhymes was there as well. This is the perfect concert for me. I feel like they asked 15 year old Ty what he would want to see live. These 3 artists would have been very high on my list. Wu Tang Clan was great. This is one of the best collections of rappers to ever be assembled. Even without some original members, I still got to see Raekwon, RZA and Inspectah Deck. It rules. Nas was amazing. He crushed the venue. The whole crowd was vibing to him when he stepped on stage. He had this incredible presence. It's a show I won't soon forget. And to see Busta, he showed up at the end, that was the cherry on top. It was a dream. I loved this show. I'm glad I went. Now to the album portion of my list.

At number 3 I have "Dropout Boogie" by The Black Keys. The Black Keys are one of my all time favorite bands. I have been in love with their music since I first heard them in 2001. Their sound is unique to only them. People have tried to replicate it, but they cannot do it as well as The Black Keys. That is why I love "Dropout Boogie" so much. It is a return to form. They are going back to their roots on this album. They are more bluesy and rock forward. The reverb and distortion is back. The album is fast and it flows wonderfully. I really enjoy it. I was a little taken aback when I didn't see it on anyone else's best of lists, but that is neither here nor there. "Dropout Boogie" is like going back in time for me in the best possible way.

At number 2 I have "Cheat Codes" by Danger Mouse and Blackthought. This record rips. It is such a good hip hop album. Danger Mouse is continuing to show that he is the best and most versatile producer in the game. He is at the top of the mountain on this record. The production, the beats, the sound, the extra instruments, it all works and blends so perfectly. He is a master of his craft. Speaking of masters in their craft, Blackthought shreds on this album. His rapping is pitch perfect. Verse for verse he is the best one on the record, and this record has a ton of big time cameos. Artists like Raekwon. Michael Kiwaunka and the last known recording of MF Doom. These are heavy hitters, and they are all great. But Blackthought blows them all out of the water. I have these weird feelings where I don't think Blackthought is good anymore, and then I hear something like this. It makes me feel like a dummy. But then I sit back and enjoy it. Balckthought is an amazing artist and "Cheat Codes" further proves that point.

My number 1 album of the year is "Mr Morale and the Bigsteppers" by Kendrick Lamar. This is a masterpiece. Kendrick further proves why he is the best in the game on this album. This record is deep and introspective and overwhelmingly wonderful. This is like an hour long therapy session and Kendrick bares his soul on the album. I must have listened to this record dozens of times but I still find something new and different that I love with each new listen. This is a work of art. This is a masterclass in recording an album. There are no bad tracks. Everything works. The flow of the album, the tracklisting, it is all perfect. The accolades are very, very well deserved. I got to see him while he toured with this album and that was an amazing experience. Kendrick Lamar is the GOAT. "Mr Morale and the Bigsteppers" further hammers that home.

That is it for music. Come back tomorrow for my top 5 movies of 2022. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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A Night With Nas and Wu-Tang Clan

Last night I got to see Wu Tang Clan and Nas on their New York State of Mind tour. Saint Louis was their first stop and a buddy of mine wanted to go. He asked if I was interested, and you better believe I was fully in. Nas and Wu Tang are two artists that I have always wanted to see live but never had a real chance. The last time Nas was in Saint Louis was in the 90's. As for Wu Tang, who knows when they were last playing live shows in STL. But they were here last night. In fact this was the first stop on their tour. They opened the whole thing here in Saint Louis. I was champing at the bit to see what this whole show would entail.

When we got there, the show was at Riverport, or as it is now known, Hollywood Casino Amphitheater, where there was a DJ playing. I have been to shows where the DJ is the headliner and also the opening act. This DJ, DJ Scratch, was very good at his craft. He was great at scratching, kept the crowd involved, played great tunes and did some wild stuff on the turntables. He has also produced records for members of Wu Tang, so you know he has credentials. He got on stage for 45 minutes and rocked the crowd the whole time. I did not know what to expect next. I have now been to three concerts since the start of the pandemic and each one has started right on time. And like clockwork, Wu Tang walked on the stage right at 9pm. I was impressed at the impeccable timing. They proceeded to play for 25 minutes, and it was one hit after another. I was impressed at how good they still sounded. They kept the crowd involved. They talked in between songs. Each of the emcees got their own chance to shine. The RZA did his verse from "Bring the Ruckus", and I was in heaven. It was a thing of beauty. The RZA is my favorite member. I did not know who I would see, but I was pleased. The only two original members that are still alive that were not there last night were Method Man and Redman. Every other living member was on that stage. Even ODB's son, YDB, joined the band on stage. I was hyped to watch them perform. Nas joined them after 25 minutes to perform a song. This ruled. He came on stage and crushed. I figured he was going to walk off stage and let Wu Tang finish their set. He did not. Wu Tang left the stage and then Nas performed for 25 minutes. He was amazing. I was more on the Wu Tang side as to who I wanted to see most, but Nas ended up impressing me the most last night. He went from song to song like the pro he is. The screen in the background was showing old music videos of his. It was very cool to see him perform and then look at a much younger version of himself. Nas was incredible. I could not have been more impressed watching him perform. Then, after the first 25 minutes, Raekwon and Ghostface Killah came back on stage and did a few songs together. Then the rest of the Wu Tang clan, minus the RZA, got back on stage and did another 25 minutes. Again, it was hit after hit. I was amazed at how they kept the show going and how each performer did their thing. After Wu Tang did a second 25 minutes, Nas came back out. He proceeded to do all his hits. It was amazing. He was simply wonderful. I could not have been vibing more. Nas did 25 more minutes and then thanked the crowd for coming out. I loved that each headliner did their thing for two seperate 25 minutes or so sets. I also loved that each group had a wardrobe change between each set. Most of the guys had a totally different outfit on for their second set. The night seemed to be over. The stage went dark, but I figured it was done. Then Busta Rhymes came out and did a few songs. It felt like I was in eighth grade again, listening to some of the first hip hop artists I discovered. It was a tremendous open to their tour and a great, great show.

I am so happy I got to see these legends perform live. What a great night of live hip hop.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.